Escape 2009
On February 13th we took 270 people from eight military communities to a Youth Hostel in Bitburg, Germany for our yearly middle school retreat. Our focus this year was on Joshua 1:9: “Be Strong and Courageous” and do what you know is right. We sought help students understand God’s work through ordinary people who had the faith to do what was right in His eyes. Students had a great amount of fun and enjoyed mentoring relationships with loving adults. Each day students worshipped in a large group, heard teaching from our speaker, participated in some experiential learning, and discussed what they learned in small groups.
God worked in powerful ways. About half the camp, around 130, stayed behind to engage with Christ on a personal level, after the speaker presented the Gospel. About 60 of those made first time decisions to follow Christ. There might be enough server space to share from each community about how God changed lives, but we will not test that, so here is an excerpt from the Stuttgart community on what happened to them during Escape 2009:
God provided in so many ways and worked in many students’ lives during the retreat!! We wanted to share some highlights and pictures with you so you could celebrate with us!
Spiritual Renewal:
· 4 students from Stuttgart prayed and accepted Christ as their Savior! (plus many others from different communities)
· Several students shared that although they had heard the gospel before, on Sunday night they were able to fully understand and know God’s love and forgiveness. I had been praying specifically for one of these gals and it has been so encouraging to see her lit up with the joy of Jesus! She is changed and excited about God!
· Many students were able to pray with leaders and friends about hard family and life issues.
· The Old Testament Hero Teachings were applicable and understandable for our students! They loved hearing from Rob, our speaker and God used Him and his team mightily!
· Kids loved the band and worship and truly experienced God through the singing.
Relationships Built:
· We had many great bonding moments through the bus ride, through crazy late night games, afternoon activities and small group discussions!
· Good teamwork and life lessons were learned through the challenge games of group knot-untying and team Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich making. J
Details taken care of:
· Good relationships built with the facility managers and staff
· Great team work from all the leaders and staff who jumped in to help in the dining hall, bookstore, making supply runs, cleaning and so much more…
You can watch all of our camp videos courtesy of YouTube.com above.